I wanted to watch a Thanksgiving movie, and this is the first I've thought of--Planes, Trains and Automobile. I knew the plot outline and had heard the film was funny.
Overall, I was disappointed. Steve Martin experiences one travel nightmare after another. It's relentless and becomes boring and unpleasant to watch. Also, the happy ending for John Candy was unearned.
It didn't seem right to write about complaints on Thanksgiving Day.
So, I saved my complaint about the food for today. I think this was our fifth Thanksgiving with Whole Foods meals. We ordered a different meal this time.
First, a cider brined turkey, which was good. The maple mashed sweet potatoes and orange cranberry sauce were also good, and the gravy okay. The mac and cheese was runny--it had way too much liquid. Lastly was the green bean casserole. I generally don't like these. But it was supposed to cook for 30 minutes. I cooked it for 40 minutes and it was still far from done. My attempt to finish it in the microwave failed. I'll see if I can salvage it tonight.
I've had issues with cooking times on other occasions with Whole Foods dinners, but I didn't expect problems with the oven. I'm still in a learning curve with the electric cooktop, and the gravy and mashed sweet potatoes were starting to burn, so I gave up on casserole.
I really missed stuffing. I just assumed stuffing would be included. D'oh. Didn't look very closely at the order. Next time, I'll be more careful.
Another Thanksgiving Day--our first in our new home.
So, I'll start with that. I'm thankful that we bought this condo and moved here.
I'm thankful that we finally put our Norwalk condo on the market yesterday..
I'm thankful for my health.
I'm thankful Jeff's hospital visit led to him getting physical and occupational therapy and nurse visits at home.
I'm thankful for friends.
I'm thankful for Jeff.
I'm happy to report that I crossed a big to-do off my list yesterday yesterday. I got Jeff enrolled in a Medigap policy. Bonus: we got a policy for about $200 less than I expected.
I'm relieved that, to quote my law school professor Bernard Schwartz and Rocky from The Rocky Horror Picture Show, that particular sword of Damocles is no longer hanging over my head.
In other news, our freshly-painted Norwalk condo is officially on the market. It's listed as "coming soon," and the pictures look good. Here's hoping people agree.
Two days later than I had hoped that things would get better. It took a little longer, but I can say things are looking better.
Finding a medical supplement plan for Jeff has been frustrating. We had a broker in Connecticut to help us. I couldn't find one here. I called insurance companies, found that there were not many options for people on Medicare under 65 years. We think we have enough information to make a good decision.
Our health care navigator got Jeff appointments with a neurologist and a primary care provider.
Let the good times roll.
This has been a horrible week--so far.
But it's only been two days, and I'm hoping that will turn around.
Everything I do ends in a cycle of frustration. When I decide something or do something, it opens up a bunch of additional questions or things to do. Which leads to stress.
The latest issue involves ordering a refrigerator for our Norwalk condo. I've already spent hours on this yesterday and today. Now I'm listening to a ringing telephone.
Maybe things will start looking up this afternoon.
I met Beverly several years ago when we attended several writing retreats. She always had funny stories about her time writing for television sitcoms.
I picked up the book a few nights ago when I couldn't find anything new to read. I don't think I read it since it was first published in 2000.
The Last Hollywood Romance is the story of two sitcom writers: young, optimistic Emmaline and jaded, middle aged Bud who are teamed together on the sitcom Life with Lucky. It's a quick read and I enjoyed it, but I don't think I'll find it memorable on this read either.
It took me a long time to finish this book. I'm not sure exactly when I started, but it in the middle of packing and it stayed with me through moving. I didn't do a lot of reading then.
This is a scholarly work; another reason for me to read it slowly. I never thought much about what Southern women went through during the Civil War, though I did read Gone with the Wind several times. I was intrigued by Faust's use of diaries, letters. memoirs, and poetry as sources.
Women, especially among the Southern elite, found that their traditional role of ladylike subservience ill-prepared them for managing plantations and slaves and for providing for their families. Faust records how their patriotic fervor gave way to feelings of abandonment, fatigue, and frustration as the war dragged on.
I enjoyed reading about battles on women's home front rather than men's battlefront.
I certainly don't intend to post sporadically. What's the point of having a blog if I only post three times this month?
Sometimes I'm too busy, sometimes too tired, sometimes too distracted.
Two days after my last post, Jeff was hospitalized for five nights. It started with intense pain; then there were complications. I really don't want to go into the details. What's important is that Jeff's feeling much better now and has a home PT appointment tomorrow.
I was lucky to have friends like Annette and George. They met me at the emergency room, picked up Jace, and then invited me to stay with them. I thought it would only be for one night, but I stayed for two more. It was nice not to be alone. I just vegged and watched TV.
Apparently Halloween is a big holiday here. I didn't participate except Jace and I continued to walk the trails. Part of the trail was decorated with ghosts, witches, bats, and more.
I caught two of my favorite horror/Halloween movies. The first: Black Sunday. I watched it without any distractions. It is genuinely eerie and atmospheric. I also watched Kiss of the Vampire. This is not as scary as Black Sunday, and the vampires were whiny brats, but it has some good parts.
We're settling back into what passes for normal now: slowly getting furniture and learning more about our new town.
